Albert Park College has embedded a powerful student voice in all aspects of its daily life.

Why? A strong student voice fosters a culture of trust and mutual respect throughout the entire school community. And it helps create and nurture global citizens who aren’t afraid to speak up on behalf of their generation.

APC has set up a dynamic leadership structure to ensure that students at all year levels can make their voices heard.

At its heart is the Student Representative Council, which is made up of 75 students - ambassadors from every year level and key portfolio leaders who focus on specific curriculum areas.

It is run by APC’s college captains, who are elected annually by all students. The captains work with year-level student coordinators to set agendas ahead of fortnightly SRC meetings.

Topics include ways to improve school culture, support charitable events and green initiatives, and improve student wellbeing.

Two senior APC staff members - the Assistant Principal (Student Agency) and Student Leadership coordinator – are responsible for supporting the SRC and assisting the captains as they take requests to APC’s senior leadership for discussion and action.

One of the most significant recommendations to come from the SRC was the need to establish a special committee to reduce APC’s carbon emissions and implement long-term, systemic changes to make it carbon negative.

And so, the Sustainability Subcommittee was formed. Led by students and supported by a teacher representative, parents and community members, it has driven dramatic changes over the past few years to reduce the college’s carbon footprint, such as:
• Winning government grants to have solar panels installed
• Installing multipurpose bins to separate recyclable materials.
• Promoting environmentally friendly ways to get to school.

This year, students in the Sustainability Subcommittee made the decision to turn the annual Ride2School day into a month-long event called Walk and Wheel to encourage greener ways to get to and from school.

The students created an extensive strategy to inspire participation. These included:
• A month-long push to promote competition among the three college Houses, with points awarded to participants every day.
• A major marketing campaign using all school channels (SRC, college TVs, school newsletter and emails to parents).
• Ensuring teachers marked rolls daily to capture names of participants.
• Certificates awarded to leading participants on the final day.

The initiative, which was supported by the City of Port Phillip, was a great success.

Throughout the month, there was a noticeable increase in the number of students who used sustainable modes of transport to school.

In particular, in class discussions during and after the event, students in Years 7 and 8 acknowledged that it made them more conscious of incorporating sustainability into their daily routines.

And finally, a food sale to increase the carnival atmosphere on the final day raised $1740 for the Smith Family – the largest ever amount raised by the college in a single day.

The Sustainability sub-committee incorporates students, staff, parents and community members, but the group is led by students. It also reports back to School Council. In having this mechanism, students have direct impact on policy, on school based initiatives and also the ability to make a difference to their community and the wider world.

The Sub-Committee has been instrumental in acquiring the largest solar array on a government school; moving the College to 100% green power; implementing waste management solutions that minimise landfill; and embedding and increasing sustainable and eco-friendly modes of transportation to and from school.

The Sub-Committee was started by a student, has been continued to be run by students since, and has a direct impact on the school and the wider community.